JP2018075916A - Blower for vehicle seat and vehicle seat - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a blower for a vehicle seat that has no duct interposed between a seat pad and an air blower, and a vehicle seat including the blower.SOLUTION: A blower unit 20 comprises an air blower 21 and a cover plate 41. The air blower 21 comprises an impeller for generating an air current and an air blower port 24 for circulating the air current to a ventilation flue formed in a seat pad. The cover plate 41 comprises a cover ventilation port 43 provided in the air blower port 24 and being an opening capable of circulating the air current, and a protective part 44 for restraining application of load on the air blower port 24. The blower unit 20 is installed in a vehicle seat along the seat pad in a position at which the opening of the ventilation flue faces the cover ventilation port 43 provided on a reverse surface of the seat pad, and circulates the air current generated by the air blower 21 to the ventilation flue.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present disclosure relates to a vehicle seat blower that circulates air between the front and back of a seat pad in a vehicle seat, and a vehicle seat including the blower.

  In Patent Document 1, a blower is disposed on the back side of a seat pad that forms a seating surface of a vehicle seat, and an air passage and a blower formed inside the seat pad are connected via a duct having a bellows-like pipe line. A configuration for connection is disclosed. In the prior art described in Patent Document 1, the duct connected to the ventilation path of the seat pad and the blower are arranged continuously in the vertical direction.

JP, 2006-55783, A

  As described in Patent Document 1, when the duct and the blower are arranged continuously in the connecting direction to the seat pad, the thickness of the entire blower including the duct and the blower increases. Therefore, there is a problem that a large space is required to mount the blower in a limited space on the back side of the seat pad. Moreover, since the smooth distribution | circulation of air is prevented by the unevenness | corrugation of the bellows structure provided in the duct, there exists a problem that it is easy to generate noise.

  Therefore, the present disclosure provides a vehicle seat blower that eliminates the duct interposed between the seat pad and the blower, and a vehicle seat including the blower.

  A vehicle seat blower according to an embodiment of the present disclosure forms a support surface that supports a body of a seated person, and is attached to a vehicle seat including a seat pad having a ventilation path formed to allow air to flow therethrough. It is comprised so that air may be distribute | circulated to a path. The vehicle seat blower includes a blower and a cover member.

  The blower has an impeller that generates an air flow and a blower side opening that is an opening for allowing the air flow to flow through the air passage. The cover member is provided in the blower side opening and includes a cover side ventilation opening that is an opening through which an airflow can flow and a protection unit configured to suppress application of a load to the blower side opening. The vehicle seat blower is mounted on the vehicle seat along the seat pad at a position where the opening of the ventilation path provided on the back surface of the seat pad faces the cover side ventilation opening of the cover member.

  According to the said structure, the vehicle seat air blower which can be installed without a duct between a seat pad and an air blower can be obtained. By eliminating the duct interposed between the seat pad and the blower, the thickness of the entire blower can be reduced. Therefore, it is advantageous to mount the vehicle seat blowing device in a limited space on the back side of the seat pad. Moreover, the noise resulting from air flowing through the duct can be suppressed.

  On the other hand, there is a concern that a strong local load applied from the front side of the seat pad is directly applied to the blower by eliminating the duct interposed between the seat pad and the blower. Therefore, the blower can be protected against a strong local load applied from the front side of the seat pad by placing the cover member on the blower side opening. Moreover, it can suppress that a part of seat pad approachs into an air blower side opening with a cover member with respect to a seat pad moving to the direction of an air blower with a load.

  In the vehicle seat blower of the present disclosure, the following configuration may be employed. For example, in a blower in which the blower side opening is opened in the direction of the rotation axis of the impeller, the cover member is disposed in the blower side opening at a position where the center of the cover side ventilation port and the rotation axis of the impeller overlap. Furthermore, the cover member and the blower are configured to be attached to the seat at a position where the center of the cover side ventilation opening and the rotation axis of the impeller overlap with the center of the opening of the ventilation path provided on the back surface of the seat pad. Good.

  By doing in this way, the distribution path of the air current from the blower side opening to the ventilation path of the seat pad can be straightened without bending. Thereby, the flow of the airflow sent by the blower becomes smooth, and noise can be suppressed.

  In the vehicle seat blower of the present disclosure, it is preferable that the protection unit is arranged around the cover side ventilation opening and has a structure formed in a convex shape toward the seat pad side. Furthermore, it is preferable that at least the pair of protection portions be arranged at positions sandwiching the cover side ventilation opening. According to such a configuration, the separation between the seat pad and the blower side opening is ensured by increasing the thickness toward the seat pad side while securing the opening suitable for air circulation, and the blower side opening is secured. It is possible to effectively suppress the entry of foreign matter into the.

  In the vehicle seat blower of the present disclosure, the airflow is interposed between the opening of the ventilation path provided on the back surface of the seat pad and the cover side ventilation opening, and the airflow between the opening of the ventilation path and the cover side ventilation opening is provided. It is good to comprise so that the cyclic | annular sealing member comprised so that a path | route might be sealed may be further provided. By doing in this way, the airtightness in the connection part of the ventilation path of a seat pad and a cover side ventilation port can be improved. Moreover, it contributes to buffering and noise reduction between the seat pad and the cover member.

  Further, another embodiment of the present disclosure may be made as a vehicle seat. The vehicle seat includes a seat pad that forms a support surface that supports the body of a seated person and that has a ventilation path formed to allow air to flow, and a blower that distributes air through the ventilation path. The air blower included in the vehicle seat corresponds to the above-described vehicle air blower in the present disclosure. Accordingly, a vehicle seat including a blower that can be installed without a duct between the seat pad and the blower can be obtained.

The perspective view which looked at the seat back from the front side. The rear view inside a seat back showing the arrangement situation of a blower unit. The perspective view which looked at the ventilation unit from the front side. The expanded view showing the member which comprises a ventilation unit. The partial cross section figure showing the structure of the connection part of a seat back and a ventilation unit. The front view of a cover plate. Sectional drawing of a cover plate.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, this indication is not limited to the following embodiment, It is possible to implement in various aspects. In the present embodiment, the vehicle seat blower according to the present disclosure and the vehicle seat including the blower are applied to a seat used for a seat of an automobile or the like. In the present embodiment, the arrows indicating the up, down, front, back, left, and right directions attached to the drawings are described for easy understanding of the relationship between the drawings. The present disclosure is not limited to the directions given in the drawings.

  As illustrated in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the seat 1 is disposed inside the seat back 11 that supports the back of the seated person, a seat cushion (not shown) that supports the buttocks of the seated person, and the seat back 11. The air blower unit 20 and a headrest (not shown) are provided. The seat 1 includes an air conditioning mechanism that sucks air from a plurality of front side openings 15c provided on a backrest surface 11a formed by the seat back 11. Here, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described by taking the seat back 11 as an example.

  The seat back 11 includes a seat pad 12 made of urethane foam that functions as a cushioning material. The seat pad 12 is a member that covers a back frame (not shown) constituting the skeleton of the seat back 11 and forms the backrest surface 11a. Hereinafter, the surface facing the front side of the seat pad 12 is referred to as the front surface, and the surface facing the rear side is referred to as the back surface.

  As illustrated in FIG. 2, a blower unit 20 is provided on the upper part of the back side of the seat pad 12. The blower unit 20 corresponds to the vehicle seat blower in the present disclosure. The blower unit 20 includes a blower 21 that generates an air current using a rotating impeller. The blower unit 20 is mounted such that a blower opening 24 that is an opening through which the blower 21 sucks air faces the back side of the seat pad 12.

  On the back surface of the seat pad 12, a ventilation path 15 is formed that includes a plurality of connected grooves extending from the position facing the blower opening 24 along the backrest surface 11 a. The ventilation path 15 partially penetrates to the surface of the seat pad 12 at a plurality of locations, so that air can pass between the front surface and the back surface of the seat pad 12.

  Then, the seat pad back cover 13 is attached so as to cover the open surface of the ventilation path 15 in the range where the ventilation path 15 is formed on the back surface of the seat pad 12. The seat pad back cover 13 is, for example, a thin plate member made of hard felt. Since the open surface of the ventilation path 15 is blocked by the seat pad back cover 13, air can flow along the groove of the ventilation path 15. Further, the seat pad back cover 13 is provided with a ventilation passage opening 15a, which is an opening for circulating air, at a position facing the blower port 24. Through the opening, the blower port 24 and the ventilation passage 15 are provided. Communicate. Therefore, when the air blowing unit 20 sucks air from the blower port 24, the air sucked from the surface of the seat pad 12 through the ventilation path 15 can be discharged to the back side of the seat pad 12.

  Next, a detailed configuration of the blower unit 20 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. As illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, the blower unit 20 includes a blower 21, a mounting member 31, a cover plate 41, and a seal member 50 that are overlapped in a row.

  The blower 21 is a fan that generates an air flow by rotating an impeller by a motor, and is provided on the rearmost side of the blower unit 20. In the present embodiment, a centrifugal fan is used as the blower 21, but other types of fans may be used. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the blower 21 includes a blower casing 22 that is an outer box that houses a motor and an impeller (not shown). The impeller is housed in the blower casing 22 with the rotating shaft directed in the front-rear direction and air sucked from the front side of the blower 21.

  A blower opening 24 that is a circular opening centered on the rotation axis of the impeller is provided in the front central portion of the blower casing 22. Air is sucked from the blower port 24 and discharged from an exhaust port (not shown) provided on the rear side of the blower casing 22. In addition, around the blower port 24, four fastening holes 23a, 23b, 23c, and 23d are provided. The fastening holes 23a to 23d are holes for inserting rivets 51a, 51b, 52c, and 52d for superposing and fastening the blower 21, the attachment member 31, and the cover plate 41. These fastening holes 23 a to 23 d are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction around the blower port 24.

  The attachment member 31 is a plate-like member that is provided between the front side of the blower unit 20 and the rear side of the cover plate 41 and extends to the left and right along the in-plane direction of the blower port 24. The attachment member 31 is a member that bears the function of positioning and supporting the blower unit 20 at a position where the blower port 24 faces the opening of the ventilation path 15 provided on the back surface of the seat pad 12. The attachment member 31 is made of, for example, a hard resin having elasticity, and is configured to support the blower unit 20 in a state in which the blower unit 20 is pressed in the direction of the back surface of the seat pad 12 by its elastic force.

  As illustrated in FIG. 4, a communication hole 33, which is a circular opening that allows air to flow by exposing the blower port 24 to the front, is provided at the center of the mounting member 31. Around the communication hole 33, four fastening holes 35a, 35b, 35c, and 35d, which are holes for inserting the rivets 51a to 51d, are provided. These fastening holes 35a to 35d are disposed at positions corresponding to the fastening holes 23a to 23d of the blower 21, respectively.

  A plurality of engaging claws 34 a, 34 b, 34 c, 34 d, 34 e, and 34 f are provided on the left side and the right side of the mounting member 31 so as to protrude to the back surface side (that is, the rear side) of the mounting member 31. These engagement claws 34a to 34f are arranged at positions corresponding to members related to the back frame provided at positions where the blower unit 20 should be attached. Thereby, the engaging claws 34a to 34f are respectively engaged with the members related to the back frame, so that the blower unit 20 is positioned and supported at a predetermined position.

  The cover plate 41 is a plate-like member that is provided on the front side of the attachment member 31 and covers the blower port 24 from the front side. The cover plate 41 is a member that has a function of circulating the airflow and protecting the blower port 24. The protection here refers to, for example, suppressing a load applied from the front surface side of the seat pad 12 toward the blower port 24, or entering foreign matter (for example, a part of the seat pad 12) into the blower port 24. It is to suppress. For this reason, the cover plate 41 is comprised with the raw material rich in rigidity, such as a metal.

  As illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, a cover ventilation hole 43, which is an opening for circulating airflow, is provided at the center of the cover plate 41. The cover ventilation opening 43 is formed of a substantially circular opening area as a whole that is opened in accordance with a circular area corresponding to the shape of the blower opening 24. In addition, a protective portion 44 having a long and slender convex shape provided at a position sandwiching both sides of the cover vent hole 43 is provided at the center of the cover plate 41. By the thickness formed by the protective portion 44, the separation between the seat pad 12 and the blower port 24 is ensured, so that the load applied toward the blower port 24 is suppressed, and the foreign matter into the blower port 24 is also reduced. The entry is suppressed.

  Further, as illustrated in FIG. 4, four fastening holes 45 a, 45 b, 45 c, 45 d that are holes for inserting the rivets 51 a to 51 d are provided around the cover ventilation opening 43 and the protection portion 44. . These fastening holes 45a to 45d are arranged at positions corresponding to the fastening holes 23a to 23d of the blower 21, respectively.

  The blower 21, the attachment member 31, and the cover plate 41 are integrally fastened by rivets 51a to 51d. Specifically, the fastening holes 23a to 23d, the fastening holes 35a to 35d, and the fastening holes 45a to 45d are overlapped in the order of the blower 21, the mounting member 31, and the cover plate 41, and inserted into the fastening holes. The rivets 51a to 51d are fastened by caulking the shaft ends. In addition, when the blower 21, the attachment member 31, and the cover plate 41 are fastened, the center 24a of the blower port 24 and the center 43a of the cover ventilation port 43 are positioned so as to overlap in the front-rear direction. Yes. That is, the rotation axis of the impeller built in the blower 21, the center 24 a of the blower opening 24, and the center 43 a of the cover ventilation opening 43 are arranged in a straight line.

  The seal member 50 is a seal member used for providing airtightness between the cover ventilation opening 43 and the ventilation path opening 15a, and is disposed on the foremost side of the blower unit 20. The seal member 50 is made of, for example, a material having elasticity and airtightness such as a synthetic resin foam such as flexible urethane foam, foamed rubber, or the like. The seal member 50 is an annular member having an inner diameter larger than or equal to the diameters of the cover ventilation opening 43 and the ventilation path opening 15a. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the seal member 50 is arranged so as to surround the cover ventilation hole 43 and to be in close contact with the cover plate 41.

  Next, a structure in which the blower unit 20 is connected to the ventilation path 15 in the seat pad 12 so as to allow airflow to flow will be described with reference to FIG. As illustrated in FIG. 5, a groove-like ventilation path 15 extending in the vertical direction is provided on the back side of the seat pad 12. The open surface of the ventilation path 15 on the back surface side of the seat pad 12 is covered with a seat pad back cover 13, thereby forming an air circulation path along the ventilation path 15. The seat pad back cover 13 is provided with an air passage opening 15a that is a circular opening for circulating air.

  In the seat pad 12, a plurality of through passages 15 b that branch from a part of the ventilation passage 15 and reach the surface of the seat pad 12 are provided. And the surface side opening 15c which is an opening which leads to the penetration path 15b is provided in the surface of the seat pad 12. As shown in FIG. On the surface of the seat pad 12, a seat cover 14 serving as a skin of the backrest surface 11 a is placed so as to be in close contact with the seat pad 12. The seat cover 14 has a breathable structure that allows air to pass through the front and back, such as a mesh material and a through hole, at least at a position corresponding to the front surface side opening 15c.

  The blower unit 20 is attached by being positioned at a position where the blower port 24 and the cover ventilation port 43 are directly opposed to the ventilation passage opening 15 a of the seat pad back cover 13 by the attachment member 31. More specifically, at the position where the rotation axis of the impeller of the blower 21, the center of the blower opening 24, the center of the cover ventilation opening 43, and the center of the ventilation path opening 15 a are aligned in the front-rear direction. 20 is positioned.

  The blower unit 20 is supported in a state of being pressed in the direction of the front seat pad back cover 13 by the elastic force of the mounting member 31. For this reason, the seal member 50 interposed between the cover plate 41 and the seat pad back cover 13 is compressed by the cover plate 41 and the seat pad back cover 13, and the seal member 50 is covered with the cover ventilation opening 43 and the ventilation path opening. It is in close contact with 15a. As a result, the air flow path from the blower port 24 to the ventilation path 15 is sealed.

  In such a structure, when the blower 21 is operated, an air flow from the front surface side to the back surface side of the seat pad 12 is generated. Thereby, the air sucked from the surface side opening 15c through the seat cover 14 flows through the through passage 15b and the ventilation passage 15, is sucked from the blower port 24 of the blower unit 20, and discharged backward. Yes.

  Next, a characteristic configuration of the cover plate 41 will be described with reference to FIGS. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the cover plate 41 is provided with a cover ventilation opening 43 at the center of the cover plate 41, which is an opening for circulating airflow. The cover ventilation port 43 is formed of an opening region having a shape in which both ends in the longitudinal direction of the rectangle are swelled in an arc shape and are opened in accordance with the center of the blower port 24. The diameter in the longitudinal direction of the opening region of the cover vent hole 43 is, for example, equal to or larger than the diameter of the blower port 24.

  In addition, a pair of protective portions 44 that are in a positional relationship sandwiching the cover ventilation port 43 from both sides are provided on both sides of the cover ventilation port 43 in the short direction. The protection part 44 has a shape that swells in an elongated linear shape along the longitudinal direction of the cover vent hole 43.

  As illustrated in FIG. 7, the cross section of the protection part 44 is formed in a curved shape that is convex toward the upstream side (that is, the seat pad 12 side) in the flow direction of the airflow generated by the blower 21. Since the protection 44 is formed in a convex shape, the thickness of the protection portion 64 increases along the front-rear direction of the seat pad 12. With this thickness, the separation between the seat pad 12 and the blower port 24 is secured, and entry of foreign matter into the blower port 24 can be effectively suppressed.

Below, the effect in the sheet | seat 1 provided with the ventilation unit 20 of this embodiment and the said ventilation unit 20 is demonstrated.
According to the blower unit 20, a vehicle seat blower that can be installed without a duct between the seat pad 12 and the blower 21 can be obtained. By eliminating the duct interposed between the seat pad 12 and the blower 21, the thickness of the entire blower unit 20 can be reduced. Therefore, it is advantageous to mount the blower unit 20 in a limited space on the back side of the seat pad 12. Moreover, the noise resulting from air flowing through the duct can be suppressed.

  Moreover, the blower 21 can be protected against a local strong load applied from the front side of the seat pad 12 by placing the cover plate 41 on the blower opening 24 of the blower unit 20. Moreover, it can suppress that a part of seat pad 12 approachs into the blower opening 24 with the cover plate 41 with respect to the displacement of the seat pad 12 in the direction of the air blower 21 with a load.

  The cover plate 41 is placed on the blower opening 24 at a position where the center of the cover ventilation opening 43 overlaps with the center of the blower opening 24 and the rotation axis of the impeller. Further, the blower unit 20 is configured to be attached at a position where the center of the cover ventilation opening 43 and the rotation axis of the impeller overlap with the center of the ventilation passage opening 15 a communicating with the ventilation passage 15 in the seat pad 12. Yes. By doing in this way, the distribution path of the air current from the blower port 24 to the ventilation path 15 can be straightened without bending. Thereby, the flow of the airflow sent by the blower 21 becomes smooth, and noise can be suppressed.

  In addition, by providing the sealing member 50 that seals the flow path of the airflow between the cover ventilation opening 43 and the ventilation path opening 15a, the airtightness at the connection portion between the cover ventilation opening 43 and the ventilation path 15 is improved. it can. Further, it contributes to buffering and noise reduction between the seat pad 12 and the cover plate 41.

(Modification)
(1) In the above-described embodiment, an example of an air-conditioning mechanism that sucks air from the backrest surface 11a by forming an air flow from the front surface side to the back surface side of the seat pad 12 by the blower 21 has been described. Not only this but an air-conditioning mechanism may be the structure which blows off air from the backrest surface 11a by forming the airflow which goes to the surface side from the back surface side of the seat pad 12 with the air blower 21.

  (2) In the above-described embodiment, an example of an air-conditioning mechanism that includes the blower unit 20 in the seat back 11 that supports the back of the seated person and distributes air between the front and back of the seat back 11 has been described. Not only this but an air-conditioning mechanism may be the structure which equips the seat cushion which supports a seated person's buttocks with the ventilation unit 20, and distribute | circulates air on the front and back of a seat cushion.

  (3) In the above-described embodiment, the case where the cover plate 41 that is a plate-like member is applied as the cover member in the present disclosure has been described. For example, a cover member having another shape such as a dome shape may be applied.

  (4) In the above-described embodiment, an example in which an elongated linear shape is applied to the protective portion 44 disposed around the cover vent hole 43 has been described. For example, the protection unit 44 may have a curved shape or an annular shape surrounding the cover ventilation port 43. Moreover, the number of the protection parts 44 arrange | positioned around the cover ventilation hole 43 may be more or less than two.

  (5) A function of one component in each of the above embodiments may be shared by a plurality of components, or a function of a plurality of components may be exhibited by one component. Moreover, you may abbreviate | omit a part of structure of each said embodiment. In addition, at least a part of the configuration of each of the above embodiments may be added to or replaced with the configuration of the other above embodiments. It should be noted that all aspects included in the technical idea specified from the words described in the claims are embodiments of the present disclosure.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Seat, 11 ... Seat back, 12 ... Seat pad, 13 ... Seat pad back cover, 14 ... Seat cover, 15 ... Ventilation path, 15a ... Ventilation path opening part, 20 ... Blower unit, 21 ... Blower, 24 ... Blower Mouth, 31 ... mounting member, 41 ... cover plate, 43 ... cover vent, 44 ... protective part, 50 ... seal member.

Claims (7)

A vehicle seat blower that is mounted on a vehicle seat that forms a support surface that supports the body of a seated person and that has a seat pad having a ventilation path formed to allow air to flow therethrough, and that circulates air through the ventilation path. And
An impeller for generating an air flow, and a blower having a blower side opening which is an opening for circulating the air flow in the ventilation path;
A cover member provided at the blower side opening and provided with a cover side ventilation port that is an opening through which the airflow can flow and a protection unit configured to suppress application of a load to the blower side opening. ,
A vehicle seat air blower configured to be attachable to the vehicle seat along the seat pad at a position where the opening of the ventilation path provided on the back surface of the seat pad and the cover side ventilation port of the cover member face each other. apparatus. The blower side opening is opened in the rotational axis direction of the impeller,
2. The vehicle seat blower according to claim 1, wherein the cover member is disposed in the blower side opening at a position where a center of the cover side ventilation port and a rotation axis of the impeller overlap.   The configuration is such that the vehicle seat can be mounted at a position where the center of the cover side ventilation opening and the rotation axis of the impeller overlap with the center of the opening of the ventilation path provided on the back surface of the seat pad. Item 3. A vehicle seat blower according to Item 2.   4. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the protection portion is disposed around the cover-side ventilation opening and has a structure formed in a convex shape toward the seat pad side. 5. Sheet blower.   The vehicle seat blower according to claim 4, wherein at least the pair of protection portions are arranged at positions sandwiching the cover-side ventilation opening.   It is interposed between the opening of the ventilation path provided on the back surface of the seat pad and the cover side ventilation opening, and seals the flow path of the air flow between the opening of the ventilation path and the cover side ventilation opening. The vehicle seat blower according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising an annular seal member configured to perform the above operation. A vehicle seat comprising a seat pad that forms a support surface that supports the body of a seated person and that has an air passage formed to allow air to circulate, and a blower that circulates air through the air passage,
The blower is
An impeller for generating an air flow, and a blower provided with a blower side opening which is an opening for circulating the air flow in the ventilation path;
A cover member provided at the blower side opening and provided with a cover side ventilation port that is an opening through which the airflow can flow and a protection unit configured to suppress application of a load to the blower side opening. ,
The vehicle seat, wherein the blower is mounted along the seat pad at a position where the opening of the ventilation path provided on the back surface of the seat pad and the cover side ventilation opening face each other.

Images